High5 nutrition guide for sportive riding

Riding a Sportive is a fantastic way to explore new areas with other enthusiastic riders knowing that you are 100% supported by event staff. Wiggle events feature a number of superb Sportive races over the year and we have teamed up with High5 to provide you with this helpful Sportive nutrition guide - #goodstuff

Breakfast before

It's important that you have a light breakfast before your Sportive event; it's essential that it's high in carbohydrates so plenty of cereal, toast and porridge is highly recommended. You need to start your caffeine loading program 60-90 minutes before the start of your Sportive ride. You should drink the following amounts of EnergySource X’treme based on your bodyweight:

Carbohydrate and fluids during

How much you drink during your Sportive ride will largely depend on factors such as your personal sweat-rate and the weather conditions on the day of your event. You should drink EnergySource which has a special 2:1 formula which means that in hot conditions you can drink up to 1000ml per hour. If the weather is cold and you drink less than 800ml per hour, you need to increase your carbohydrate intake, by taking EnergyGel:

800ml or more: no gel

750ml: 1 x gel per hour

400ml: 2 x gel per hour

EnergyGel Plus (contains caffeine) should be your first gel each hour - the caffeine contained in this gel will keep your overall caffeine levels topped up over the course of your Sportive event. Any remaining gels taken in that hour should be standard EnergyGel (no caffeine). The reason for this is to ensure you control your caffeine intake - you will not need to drink or eat anything else during a longer event.

Sensitive To Caffeine? If you have a medical condition or do not wish to use caffeine for another reason, then simply switch each of the products detailed above with the non-caffeine equivalent from High5 and ignore the section on caffeine loading before your event.

Anti-cramp strategy The American College of Sports Nutrition states that:“Muscle cramps are associated with dehydration and electrolyte deficits and muscle fatigue.”

Adding Zero Neutral Tabs to your drink boosts the electrolyte content and provides magnesium. This might be a good strategy in hot conditions.

After: Drink 400ml – 800ml of Protein Recovery as soon as you finish. Eat a balanced meal one to two hours later.